12 new cases confirmed in outbreak of pertussis

Utah's outbreak of whooping cough continues to grow, according to a Utah Health Department spokesman.

Since Sept. 11, when 50 cases of pertussis had been diagnosed in the state, another 12 cases have been confirmed. Those include seven in Salt Lake County, one in Weber-Morgan and four from the southwest part of the state, Ross Martin said.Pertussis is called whooping cough because of the noise that children with pertussis make. While the illness poses no serious risk to adults, it can be very dangerous - even deadly - to infants.

Treatment for the bacterial illness is antibiotics. Adults who think they have pertussis should see their physician to begin a course of antibiotics if they are around small children.